Netanyahu Orders West Bank Gates Shut After Hebron Clash

West Bank movement will be restricted starting Friday after two Israeli soldiers were killed in a firefight near Hebron, with checkpoints and gates linking Palestinian villages to main roads closing for the fourth time this month. Israeli forces said they would begin searches in the Hebron neighborhood where the gunmen are said to have operated, with residents able to leave only through three designated exit points after questioning and security screening.

The Israeli army said the shooting occurred near Yehuda Junction outside Hebron. Two attackers, identified as Palestinians from Hebron armed with an M16 assault rifle and a handgun, reached an Israeli military position in the morning. An exchange of fire followed that lasted about 20 minutes before troops killed both gunmen. Three other soldiers were lightly wounded, and emergency responders reported five people injured, some critically, with two men in their 20s suffering gunshot wounds to the lower limbs.

Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting of his security cabinet with senior military and security officials, and his office said security forces were told to cordon off Hebron immediately and prepare to close the entire West Bank starting Friday. Netanyahu blamed Hamas, saying the group was "planning a major attack aimed at murdering innocent civilians," without explaining what the planned attack involved. Army chief of staff Eyal Zamir said a "large quantity of ammunition was found" in a vehicle used by the attackers, intended for a "larger-scale attack."

The violence comes as Israeli voters are set to decide next Tuesday whether to give Netanyahu another term. West Bank closures have become more frequent, marking the fourth instance in the past month that Israel has restricted movement across the territory by shutting gates and checkpoints linking Palestinian villages to main roads.

Israeli forces and security agencies carried out dozens of operations across the West Bank on Friday, arresting dozens of people, including some affiliated with Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and seizing weapons such as M16 rifles and submachine guns. Netanyahu said the military would force Palestinians out of the Hebron neighborhood from which he said the attackers came, comparing the approach to Israel's assaults on two Palestinian refugee camps in 2025. The operation in Hebron is expected to last several days.